iPhone details uncovered in Sales Training Workbook
Here's some dirt that's sure to heat up the iPhone debates over the next 20 days. According to alleged scans from the "iPhone Sales Training Workbook," we're seeing a vast array of features that we were already fully aware of, but here's the skinny on what you may have not known until now:
Update: It's worth pointing out that only 15 of at least 33 pages have been published so far.
Alright, so we're sure just about everyone has a bone to pick with Apple's first stab at a mobile phone, but it seems like many of these quibbles have already been recognized and accounted for. Namely, it appears that the Apple is already aware that some potential buyers will be clamoring for more than 8GB of onboard storage, yet the recommended "solution" is just a runaround about keeping your excess data stored in iTunes until you absolutely need it (gee, thanks). Furthermore, a blurb concerning the on-screen keyboard for customers used to "real buttons" lends even more legitimacy to the worries that have cropped up already around this questionable "feature." Lastly, don't think the selling agents will act surprised when you question the lack of integrated GPS. They are pre-programmed with a response of "thanks for the feedback, we'll let Apple know of your interest" which insinuates that someone at Cupertino is fully aware of how beneficial this would be (in a second generation?).
Interestingly, Cindynjgirl79 (the source of these leaks) claims to have acquired this information while not being employed by either AT&T or Apple, but we can't help but question the outrightness of her actions which includes posting a picture of herself holding the manual and stamping her email address on every scanned page. Of course, it would certainly be quite the feat if every single scan here was faked, but you can never ignore that minute possibility. So, now that you're in the know, feel free to sound off in comments.
- No one-touch dialing (two touches at a minimum)
- Vibrate mode is included
- Voice dialing is not mentioned as a feature, though it's not specifically excluded either
- Users can have a voice conversation whilst browsing the web "when WiFi access is available"
- iPhone users will not be able to conduct IM conversations with instant messaging users
- Emailing videos and pictures are a go, MMS is not supported
- MEdia Mail won't be used for ringtone and answertone downloads
- MEdia Net, MobiTV, and Cellular Video are (unsurprisingly) not available for the iPhone
- iTunes will sync iPhone with the Address Book on Macs or Outlook/Outlook Expess on PCs
- No GPS or TeleNav support, sorry Google hopefuls
Update: It's worth pointing out that only 15 of at least 33 pages have been published so far.
Alright, so we're sure just about everyone has a bone to pick with Apple's first stab at a mobile phone, but it seems like many of these quibbles have already been recognized and accounted for. Namely, it appears that the Apple is already aware that some potential buyers will be clamoring for more than 8GB of onboard storage, yet the recommended "solution" is just a runaround about keeping your excess data stored in iTunes until you absolutely need it (gee, thanks). Furthermore, a blurb concerning the on-screen keyboard for customers used to "real buttons" lends even more legitimacy to the worries that have cropped up already around this questionable "feature." Lastly, don't think the selling agents will act surprised when you question the lack of integrated GPS. They are pre-programmed with a response of "thanks for the feedback, we'll let Apple know of your interest" which insinuates that someone at Cupertino is fully aware of how beneficial this would be (in a second generation?).
Interestingly, Cindynjgirl79 (the source of these leaks) claims to have acquired this information while not being employed by either AT&T or Apple, but we can't help but question the outrightness of her actions which includes posting a picture of herself holding the manual and stamping her email address on every scanned page. Of course, it would certainly be quite the feat if every single scan here was faked, but you can never ignore that minute possibility. So, now that you're in the know, feel free to sound off in comments.













Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Travis @ Jun 9th 2007 6:56AM
I'm still getting one. My PDA phone wouldn't MMS either. I just have people send directly to my email address...no biggie. As for IM...couldn't care less about that feature.
Hub @ Jun 9th 2007 8:42AM
@TRAVIS
I hear ya brother! I'm with you man. This thing is still better than me carrying my Hx4700, Samsung K5, and Samsung Sync. It is the better alternative than what else is out there....hands down. I've had my fill of Pocket PC/Windows Mobile and my stomach has been turning for quite a while.... I can live without the IM stuff and to a lesser extent MMS. I wouldn't be surprised if those capabilities weren't added by OS upgrades or 3rd party somewhere down the line.
John @ Jun 18th 2007 3:44PM
I'm going for the N95 instead. It has all of the above and much more.
MrLuna @ Jun 9th 2007 9:57AM
There ISN'T any 3rd party apps support Hub, so you're shit out of luck.
Rudi A.K @ Jun 9th 2007 10:33AM
Actually you're wrong. Apple did not rule out 3rd party apps support in the iPhone so it will probably happen at some point.
Hub @ Jun 9th 2007 12:06PM
@Mr Luna,
Apparently you didn't get the Memo. Steve Jobs stated that they are working on a solution that will allow 3rd party app development without compromising the security of the phone. A solution is anticipated shortly.... this was announced to Mossberg at D5. You're uninformed. It is said that "ignorance is mankinds worse disease" and it is hard to argue that when I read comments such as yours. Gees...
Brandon @ Jun 9th 2007 10:12AM
Wow, they're skimping on quite a few things there, how could you leave out MMS? That's absurd!
No mention of the camera... :-/
dizilbdog @ Jun 9th 2007 10:54AM
Calling Shannigans SHANNIGANS... Your tell me that ATT let these people keep that manual B.S No way they had a meeting and the manager took them back after. This is some really good B.S. No one can get there hands on any Iphone stuff, but this person does. Oh yeah and you can send messages with pictures. It's actually on the Apple Website, an Jobs did that during his last WWDC presentation. Still calling this is a real good fake.
brian
Will @ Jun 9th 2007 11:16AM
actually man, they've been laying around my store since tuesday for most anybody to look at...i just wasn't dumb enough to risk getting fired by scanning the pages and sending them in. let me assure you, this is NOT FAKE
as for Cellular Video, it's only available on 3G phones...so that's absolutely not a surprise, saw that one coming the day it was announced.
Tidus528 @ Jun 9th 2007 7:54PM
You can send pictures using email, but you can't use MMS... which makes me sad, because my current smartphone can, but I'm still getting an iPhone no matter what.
Dipset @ Jun 10th 2007 2:33AM
You are a dumbass. All the stores received a box of these training guides.
PEZ @ Jun 9th 2007 11:08AM
"iPhone users will not be able to conduct IM conversations with instant messaging users "
What the hell does that mean?
MrLuna @ Jun 9th 2007 11:23AM
What it means PEZ is, that the iPhone just lost itself the Sidekick crowd, as well as any possible teenager as a customer, plus a most of the casual customer with its price point on a 2 yr agreement and at&t's expensive data plans.
Will @ Jun 9th 2007 11:55AM
lost any possible teenager? are you serious? wow...didn't know every teenager used a sidekick, must be awesome for t-mobile to have sooo many customers! give me a break, IM on 99% of the phones is the most useless feature there is. teens would gladly take this phone, as it will be a status symbol...i've got money, you don't. that type deal and you're crazy if you don't think so
Robert @ Jun 9th 2007 11:57AM
I just wish they would hurry up and release the info on the what the iphone rate plans are gonna be! If they are like $70 a month, than forget it.
Will @ Jun 9th 2007 12:22PM
everything i hear is it's just gonna take a pda plan...unlimited data & 1500 text for $39.99. or if that's too much for you, 20mb of data for 29.99
Robert @ Jun 9th 2007 12:07PM
I wonder if we will be able to send the full 2 megapixel pictures. They will be sent through email, correct?
Mike @ Jun 9th 2007 1:12PM
POS...Okay 3rd party apps...if you know anythinga bout economics and compromising "safety", what this really means is that they'll allow 3rd party apps as long as Apple gets thier hand in your pocket. You think Jobs is saying "Please use google...where we don't make any money". I bet you all future 3rd party apps are still linked to Apple which they will further rape your ass.
-M.
Blair @ Jun 14th 2007 12:27PM
Definately.
Jesse S @ Jun 9th 2007 1:26PM
Well, this phone is completely useless to the business crowd. Let's see, no 3G, no PUSH email, no keyboard, hardly any PDA functions...Great job.
The Samsung i760 is the best pdaphone coming out this year.
R. Garrett Hanzel @ Jun 9th 2007 10:14PM
Exactly. An expensive-ass toy. One that you're stuck with for 2 years, long after HTC comes up with TouchFLO 2.0 or whatever.
Jobs: iDontThinkSo.
spencer @ Jun 9th 2007 1:30PM
i was never planning on buying the iphone. my blackberry curve is sooo much better
Will @ Jun 9th 2007 2:41PM
how do you know something is better when you've never used it? and oh yeah...does ur curve have 8gb of memory? wifi?
SUFan @ Jun 9th 2007 2:37PM
I am a BB user but am fascinated about whether this device will fail or succeed. I have no opinion one way or another but its interesting. Of all the many rumors, any info on:
-Is SIM card removable?
-Battery is fixed right? Will it last 2 years?
-Debate on the soft keyboard.
Jr @ Jun 9th 2007 8:22PM
@ Will
Dude...you remain the poster-child of everything that is wrong with Cingular/AT&T stores. You insult folks while giving yourself a supposed "higher" status. I'd love to walk into an AT&T store and have one of the sales folk talk to me like you do...you'd be out of a job...Don't give us your rumors "everything you hear"...either tell us how it is, or isn't. Or is it because as a retail salesperson, you really don't know any hard details yet?
Also, I can tell you this much...my tween (who uses a Blackjack) would never have the iPhone. IM and text messaging is too important to him. My neice (16 year old) would never have the iPhone, because IM and text messaging is too important to her. My nephew (13 year old) would never have the iPhone because IM and text messaging is too important to him.
In terms of "status symbol"...for the teenage crowd, the Sidekick is way more a status symbol...and it does what they ask.
Jer @ Jun 9th 2007 9:52PM
Your three teens represent a very small crowd.
First of all. I'm 14, both txt (the phone can do txting, so I see NO relevance in this) and IM are important to me, but I'm still buying the iPhone. You know why?
Because,
1.) I have an iPod. I've bought music from iTunes. That music is LOCKED. I can't play it with anything other than an iPod. iPods have a 70% market share on music players. Most iPod owners have downloaded music from iTunes, and could really use a iPod/Phone. These people will nearly ALL want an iPhone.
2.) 4/8 GB memory. Find another phone that has that.
3.) REAL internet. Seldomly found on other phones.
4.) Beauty (outside and in). An amazing interface. Beautifully thin and designed.
5.) Status symbol. The phone is a status symbol. And FAR, FAR, FAR, FAR, FAR, FAR more so than a stupid sidekick!
jim jonze @ Jun 10th 2007 3:01AM
Jer: "I have an iPod. I've bought music from iTunes. That music is LOCKED"
You can always burn to a CD and then rerip in an unprotected format. Also the iTunes Plus music can be transcoded into MP3 or repackaged into a standard AAC container.
Jesse S @ Jun 9th 2007 10:20PM
Jer: Any phone with a microSD slot. Ever hear of microSDHC? It means those phones can even surpass 8gigs.
SDHC is built into the microSD standard.
So that means my i760 will be able to surpass your iphone in storage, it already has more features, and has the superior Windows Mobile OS. Not to mention it actually has a keyboard...
Jer @ Jun 10th 2007 1:40AM
Yeah, sure, other than you'll have to have multiple SD cards. What a pain in the @$$. The iPhone has 8 gigs, built in, and still looks better than your i760. Not to mension that it has a cap of 2GB for the SD. That means four cards to meet the iPhone. Plus, I don't see where it has any more features. It has no touchscreen, a lower megapixel camera, it's a CDMA Win. Mo. 6 phone (yuck!). So, in other words, it'll suck. But have fun trying to show that off while people say "Well, that's sure cool, but it's no iPhone."
Jesse S @ Jun 10th 2007 1:42AM
You're an idiot. The microSD standard goes up to 20 gigs, and there are already 4gig microSD cards out.
And, honestly, I think the iphone is ugly. Design is subjective.
Brandon @ Jun 10th 2007 11:47AM
Yes, please school these people about the versatility of SD.
And the naysayers need to do some research, WM6 is an excellent OS for a phone. The way it handles email accounts, SMS/MMS and the internet is very good(even better with 3rd party apps). I won't say better than 'mini OS X' ONLY because I've never used it, but it's been a solid OS for a long time. I think Windows Mobile OSes are more tailored towards communication in terms of design.
Alex @ Jun 10th 2007 12:04PM
@ Jer
As Jesse S. said any phone with an SD slot can have up to 8 gigs or more. And ok so you want the iphone? What are you gunna do pull 800 dollars out of your ASS to pay for it, just so you can be MR COOL at school?
John @ Jun 10th 2007 12:19PM
Jer & Jesse S, you're both wrong. SD/MiniSD/Micro SD are limited to 2GB. The SDHC versions of these cards can go up to 32GB. 4GB Micro SDHC cards are available now, and people are using them in the N95. I'm sure Micro SDHC will exceed the 8GB capacity of the iPhone before the iPhone 2 comes out.
Jesse S @ Jun 10th 2007 12:57PM
I said SDHC, and I also said it was built into the standard. So if any phones with microSD (and miniSD, actually) are standards compliant, then they can use a 20gig SDHC card.
Jesse S @ Jun 10th 2007 12:58PM
Oh, and I am not sure as the capacity as of right now. I've heard 20gigs, specifically for microSDHC, is it really 32gigs, or is it 32gigs for miniSDHC?
John @ Jun 10th 2007 1:08PM
SDHC specs up to 32GB, regardless of form factor (SDHC, miniSDHC, or microSDHC).
rebirth @ Jun 10th 2007 4:28PM
it will flop no aim thats why a sidekick user would switch cause sk users get ti for the aim client basically most folks are gonna get this just for the i pod and photo software i was going to buy it but no aim i have 500 buddies on my list as u can see i need aim on my hip for my music business as well
sammy b @ Jun 10th 2007 5:32PM
An overpriced novelty device that leaves out many key features the younger generation expects in a phone.
Newton anyone? ;)
KurtD @ Jun 10th 2007 5:52PM
@ Jesse S
Only phones that have a driver that can read fat32 filesystem can use SDHC cards. There are only a handful out there that can do this (e.g. Nokia N95 as John mentioned, some Treo models, etc.)
Does the i760 with WM6 have a driver for SDHC? I want to find a Verizon compatible phone that has it so I can get an 8 gig microSDHC card when they become available.
In my opinion the iPhone is beautiful and useful for some things but probably difficult for email and texting without a real keyboard.
Also, i760 looks cool, but I have a Q now and have had several sliders, Blackberrys, and 2 Treos and it always seems like the sliders are harder to text and email with since they are less balanced when open. I text and email so much that it seems easier to have the keyboard right there at all times and for one-handed use while driving (I know that's bad, but a lot of us probably do it.)
Anyway, I agree that having no external expansion on the iPhone is a huge negative and so is no 3G and no removable battery, but maybe Apple will fix these issues on some future model.
Jesse S @ Jun 10th 2007 11:09PM
Yeah, you can get a 4gig microSDHC card from verizon, and I'm pretty sure the i760 can read it.
The i760 is a MUCH better slider than the 6700, or 6800. Try to get your hands on an i730, I think they slide the same. Except, the i760 is portrait. :(
warren.colbert @ Jun 11th 2007 8:47AM
Hmm.. starting to think the iPod doesn't do anything really well. Just does a few things OK. What do you guys think?
djpablog @ Jun 12th 2007 12:25AM
Theres really no comparison it all depends on your taste and needs. I love my HTC Hermes but I think MS comes out w/ the shittiest OS's. I plan on getting an iPhone just because I get a 30% discount on it and I dont find myself using 3G as much as I thought I would. WiFi works good enough for me which the iPhone does have and the browser does look nice I hope it supports Flash. I really want it for the multimedia features such as video/iPod as I like to keep myself entertained @ work where I cant answer my phone but can have a radio playing. So it's really a case by case basis, everyone has their own needs and I'm sure well have a 3G version out by xmas. I'm pretty sure the iPhone doesnt support the AT&T media mall because Apple will soon start selling ringtones through iTunes. And the 3rd party apps is the least of my concern, if theres a way in theres a way out im pretty sure someone will find a way its just a matter of time.
PiMPSP @ Jun 13th 2007 10:22PM
Hmmmm, I'm not gonna come out and say for a fact that those docs are fake, but I will say that being an att/Cingular employee, these documents are the first I've seen and heard of them, granted I'm not a retail rep either.
Blair @ Jun 14th 2007 12:30PM
I can go out and buy myself a 16gb SD card for my Treo for TONS less than that iphone costs. Memory isn't an issue. Most music phones now have MicroSD or such slots.
Physboy @ Jun 14th 2007 3:32PM
Where can you get a 16gb SD card????
djpg @ Jun 14th 2007 11:12PM
The docs are legit.. confirmed this 2 days ago.
djpablog @ Jun 14th 2007 11:13PM
Blair you can go out and buy an SD card for your treo for $40 buddy but please dont compare your treo's mp3 player to an iphone/ipod. I barely use my HTC hermes to listen to mp3's.
Brett Sterling @ Jun 16th 2007 12:57AM
@ Jr.,
I am 17 years old and could really careless about AIM or Yahoo IM. No one really IM these days anyways, its all about texting, calling, or myspacing/facebooking it. I am definatly getting the iphone the day it comes out and I know a lot of my friends will be buying one or wanting one as well.
Slevin @ Jun 20th 2007 4:58PM
...lol. I used to work for at&t. I tried telling so many customers that this iPhone is worthless. I can honestly say that this phone has really helped me fit a lot of people in the "I want to be Cool" category. I swear everyone and their GrandMa's want's this phone just to be cool. PEOPLE YOU DONT NEED THIS P.O.S!